Volunteer Work Day

March 6, 2010

Reported by Tom Gaylord

Turn-out was small but enthusiastic! After the morning briefing / BS
session, the team leapt into action!

Socket Sorting - Roger has been buying tools again, and was looking
to unload some! Sockets seemed to be the tool du jour, but they were
all in baggies and jumbled up. So the guys started sorting, metric and
standard, and by sizes. Then breaking them up into complete sets! Several
guys went home with "new" tools!

Model T Speedster - the aircraft action was pretty limited, but Roger
has been diving heavily into the Model T Speedster project and had
received a bunch of parts back from the powder coaters! Like the chassis!
The engine was ready for installation, steering gear needed some work,
and various other components needed to be fitted up and attached. The
brass radiator shell looks gorgeous. The project at times was a major
brain drain as everyone stood around scratching their heads over some
minor detail, but overall great progress was made! The chain hoist was
used to install the engine after the chassis rails were jury-rigged up
off the workbench to permit clearance for the engine's sump pan! Several
guys worked on the steering rod and its fit within the steering column
and its interaction with some gears. Dave Orloff, Adam, and Dave Edgerly
were the main workers on this project as best I recall.

Team Vehicles - some work was done on other vehicles but as usual I'll let
Al give the complete summary of progress. All I know was that the Model TT
flat-bed truck was out for a spin, but it stopped dead and couldn't be
revitalized. A gang of sturdy lads had to push the behemoth back into the
hangar at the end of the day. (Actually, it was bunch of old guys and it
was a comical sight! I missed out on that action as I was conveniently
talking on the phone with my daughter!) Al Sumrall was the ringleader....

Fokker Triplane - was taken out of the hangar and started up to keep it
exercised. We also had some special visitors on the property, a Mr.
Loughead from the Austin area. And yes... Mr. Loughead is related to the
man who started Lockeed Aircraft Company! He had never seen a rotary
engine run, so we pulled it out and started it up!

Fokker D.VII - Tom Miller and Terry Bledsoe pulled the trailer out of the
weeds and Tom started fixing it up for the Wheels & Keels trip at the end
of April. Roger explained how the trailer needed to be configured for the
wings - eazy-peazy stuff, and stone simple. I removed the two fake machine
guns from the Triplane and brought them back to Houston to try to refurbish
a bit as they are looking very shabby. Mike McCormick and I then set about
getting the new nose bowl to fit the airplane. After a false start and some
help from Roger we got the thing lined up straight and several holes drilled
in the bowl which allowed it to be clecoed to the lower engine cowling and
the two upper engine cowlings. This suspended the nose bowl in the proper
place and cut-outs were made in the bowl edges so mounting plates can be
fashioned. The engine cowlings were marked for trimming next work day.